Instituto de Estudios de la Sociedad

What Instituto de Estudios de la Sociedad does

Instituto de Estudios de la Sociedad (IES) is an independent, non-profit think tank founded on November 26, 2006, in Santiago, Chile, operating as a private law foundation of public beneficence (fundación de derecho privado sin fines de lucro y de beneficencia pública). The organization is dedicated to research and publication on public affairs with a qualitative, humanities-based lens, grounded in the principles of subsidiarity, solidarity, rule of law, and human dignity. Its core outputs are research publications (studies, articles, and books spanning philosophy, sociology, law, literature, and anthropology), the academic journal Revista Punto y Coma, and academic events (seminars, conferences, and workshops). An honorary Editorial Committee of six scholars from Universidad de Chicago, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Universidad del Desarrollo, Universidad de los Andes, and Universidad de Navarra anchors the intellectual output, and an eight-member honorary Board of Directors provides governance.

The business model is donation-based: IES maintains a diversified donor base of more than 50 contributors, with no single donor exceeding 15% of the annual budget, and financial statements are audited by EY Audit SpA. The 2024 executed budget was $682,000,000 CLP (approximately $718K USD), up from $380,649,803 CLP in 2020 — a ~79% increase over four years. IES does not sell products or services in the conventional sense; monetization is completed through a donation portal (market.apio.cl/ies-donaciones) and an e-commerce store (Tienda IES) for publications and merchandise. Go-to-market is community-led and event-driven, leveraging owned digital channels (website, email newsletter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, X, LinkedIn) plus in-person events for direct engagement with researchers, donors, and policy-interested citizens. The technology footprint is minimal — a standard website and digital publishing platform — with no proprietary AI, software products, or technology IP. IES competes in the Chilean think-tank landscape by differentiating on values-based, humanities-grounded analysis rather than technical policy work.

Name

Instituto de Estudios de la Sociedad

Legal name

Instituto de Estudios de la Sociedad

Website

https://ieschile.cl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Instituto de Estudios de la Sociedad (IES) is an independent Chilean think tank founded in 2006 that produces humanities-based research, the Revista Punto y Coma journal, and academic events for policy-makers, academics, and engaged citizens, funded by a diversified donor base of 50+ contributors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Las Condes

HQ country

Chile

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Contributions: IES operates on a diversified donations-based funding model. The organization maintains more than 50 donors, with no single donor exceeding 15% of the annual budget, ensuring institutional independence. Donors include individuals and organizations that support the think tank's mission of public affairs research.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

IES is an independent think tank that conducts and publishes qualitative research on public affairs with a humanities and social sciences lens, producing studies, articles, and books across philosophy, sociology, law, literature, and anthropology. Its core intellectual output is the academic journal Revista Punto y Coma, supported by a calendar of seminars, conferences, and academic workshops designed to bridge academia and public debate in Chile.

Product overview

IES Chile operates as a think tank and research center focused on public affairs, offering a unified portfolio of research, publication, and event services. The core offering is its research and publication program producing studies, articles, and books in humanities and social sciences. This is supported by Revista Punto y Coma, an academic journal with an editorial committee of recognized scholars, and complemented by academic events including seminars, conferences, and workshops that bridge the academic and political worlds to foster rigorous public debate.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Revista Punto y Coma: Academic journal/publication by IES Chile

Products and services

• Revista Punto y Coma Academic journal published by IES covering topics in humanities, social sciences, philosophy, literature, and public affairs, with an editorial committee of recognized academics and intellectuals aimed at informing public debate in Chile.
• Research Publications Studies, articles, and books published by IES researchers covering topics in philosophy, sociology, law, literature, and anthropology, focusing on public debate and policy analysis from a qualitative perspective for Chilean policy makers, academics, and engaged citizens.
• Academic Events Seminars, conferences, and academic workshops organized by IES to promote public debate and knowledge exchange among researchers, collaborators, and the broader academic community in Chile.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University of Development (UDD)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership through which IES Editorial Committee member Jorge Fábrega serves as Academic of the Centro de Investigación de la Complejidad Social at Universidad del Desarrollo.
• Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (PUC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership through which IES Editorial Committee members Joaquín Fermandois (Professor, Faculty of History) and Elena Irarrázabal (Subeditora, El Mercurio) are affiliated with PUC.
• University of Los AndescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership through which IES Editorial Committee members Braulio Fernández (Director, Instituto de Literatura) and Daniel Mansuy (Director, Instituto de Filosofía) serve at Universidad de los Andes.
• University of Navarra (Spain)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership through which IES Editorial Committee member Alejandro Vigo serves as Professor at the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters at Universidad de Navarra, Spain.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• CIEPLAN: Chilean research center focused on public affairs, political, and economic analysis with academic affiliations and publications. Directly comparable: Chilean base, nonprofit think-tank model, similar academic-style research output and event programming.
• Libertad y Desarrollo: Chilean center-right think tank producing policy research, publications, and seminars on public affairs. Directly comparable: same Chilean base, similar think-tank model (publications + events), similar values-aligned positioning, comparable scale.
• FLACSO Chile: Chilean branch of Latin American social sciences academic institution producing research, publications, and events on public policy and society. Comparable: same Chilean base, social-sciences focus, publications and events-driven model, similar audience of academics and policymakers.
• Centro de Estudios Públicos (CEP): Leading independent Chilean think tank conducting public opinion surveys and policy research across social sciences. Highly comparable: same geography, similar scale and audience, similar independent nonprofit structure, overlapping public-affairs research mandate.

Regional players

• CIDE (Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas): Mexican academic and research institution producing social science and policy research with strong publication program. Comparable in social-sciences public policy mandate, but a much larger, broader academic institution based in Mexico.
• Instituto de Estudios Peruanos (IEP): Independent Peruvian social sciences research center producing publications and policy analysis across humanities and public affairs. Comparable as a Latin American independent social-sciences think tank, but serves a different geography and primarily focuses on Peruvian policy debate.
• Centro de Estudios Espinosa Yglesias: Mexican independent research center focused on social, economic, and institutional analysis with publications and events. Comparable: independent think-tank model publishing social-sciences research in Latin America, but focused on Mexico rather than Chile.
• Fundar (Centro de Análisis e Investigación): Mexican civil society research organization conducting public affairs research and policy analysis. Comparable: independent nonprofit think-tank producing social-science research for public debate, but based in Mexico with different thematic focus.

Broad incumbents

• Fundación Carolina: Spain-based foundation promoting academic and policy dialogue between Spain and Latin America. Comparable as a large, established Spanish-language think-tank in the region, but with much broader scope (academic cooperation across many countries).

Others

• Universidad de los Andes (Centro de Estudios e Investigaciones): Colombian university with affiliated research centers publishing social-science research. Comparable as a Latin American academic research hub with social-sciences publications and events, but operates as a broader university research program rather than an independent think tank.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ieschile
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/IESChile
• Facebookfacebook.com/ies.chile
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ieschile
• Instagraminstagram.com/ieschile

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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